Meeting AgriLife’s Outreach Mission

by John L. Few IV, IPM Agent in Southern Blacklands and Dr. David Kerns, Extension Entomologist in College Station Cotton and corn are major cash crops in Texas with a market value of over 3 million dollars combined in 2016. With this much money at stake, producers are looking for methods to ensure their crops will be successful. Cotton bollworm (Helicoverpa zea) is a major pest in cotton and cause sever yield losses. In corn, corn earworm (same insect as cotton bollworm) can occasionally cause significant direct yield… Read More →

by Dr. Calvin Trostle, Extension Agronomy, TAMU Dept. of Soil & Crop Sciences, Lubbock, 806-746-6101, ctrostle@ag.tamu.edu (Disclaimer: The Texas A&M University System and System agencies, including Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and its employees, do not advocate for or against the passage of legislation in Texas which would legalize industrial hemp production. Furthermore, Texas A&M AgriLife does not endorse possible future legal industrial hemp production as a viable agricultural production system in Texas relative to any other crop.) Industrial Hemp—Texas Legislative Action is Required for Future Production Despite… Read More →

by Dr. Clark Neely, Small Grains Extension Specialist, College Station | 979-862-1412 | cbneely@tamu.edu Dr. Reagan Noland, Regional Extension Agronomist. San Angelo | 325-657-7330 | Reagan.Noland@ag.tamu.edu Recent cold temperatures experienced across the state are causing some alarm for wheat producers. On the morning of Tuesday March 5, low temperatures ranged from near 10oF in the northern Panhandle to mid-teens in the Rolling Plains, low 20’s for much of the Blacklands and mid to upper 20’s for areas of South and Southeast Texas (Figure 1). Most of the wheat… Read More →

by Dr. Scott Nolte, Dr. Pete Dotray, & Dr. Gaylon Morgan In late October 2018, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced they will extend the registration of dicamba for two years (until December 20, 2020) for over-the-top (OTT) weed control in dicamba-tolerant cotton and soybean. The extended labels include changes to ensure these products continue to be used effectively and to address concerns about off-target movement. Initial label changes state that only certified applicators may apply dicamba OTT, prohibit OTT applications after 60 days after planting for… Read More →

by Dr. Calvin Trostle, Extension Agronomy, TAMU Soil & Crop Sciences, Lubbock, (806) 723-8432, ctrostle@ag.tamu.edu ; Dr. Reagan Noland, Extension Agronomy, TAMU Soil & Crop Sciences, San Angelo, (325) 657-7330, reagan.noland@ag.tamu.edu For wheat producers in the Texas High Plains and lower Rolling Plains/Concho Valley Fall 2018 has brought field symptoms that have baffled some growers. Much of this is likely due to exceptionally large October rains. Essentially all fields south of Lubbock received at least 6” of rain, a few fields received twice that. Rains north of Lubbock were… Read More →

by Dr. Calvin Trostle, Extension Agronomy, TAMU Soil & Crop Sciences, Lubbock, (806) 723-8432, ctrostle@ag.tamu.edu Farmers across Texas are familiar with standard soil testing procedures and many make use of soil tests to determine fertilizer applications for a wide range of crops and soil types. You have likely been encouraged to soil test annually and “Don’t Guess—Soil Test” to better pinpoint your soil fertility program. Overall soil testing information from Texas A&M is found at http://soiltesting.tamu.edu/ Included is instructions on how to sample, what types of test you… Read More →

by G.D. Morgan and M.A. Matocha, Teeas A&M AgriLife Extension Service Boll weevils have been found in multiple locations north of the Lower Rio Grande Valley in 2018, including the Coastal Bend and Wintergarden regions. To regain complete boll weevil control, everyone must be diligent, again, about destroying volunteer cotton in gin yards, non-commercial fields, equipment yards, and industrial sites. The information below is focused on gin yards, but will be relevant to the non-commercial cotton areas as well. With over 80% of the cotton planted in 2018… Read More →

by Scott Nolte-Texas A&M AgriLife Extension; Peter Dotray-Texas A&M AgriLife Research & Extension; Muthu Bagavathiannan-Texas A&M AgriLife Research What is glyphosate Glyphosate is an herbicide used to control a wide range of undesirable plants in lawns and gardens, row crops, pastures, aquatics, road sides, rights-of-way, and other managed areas. First introduced for use in 1974, glyphosate is now one of the most widely used herbicides in the United States. Today, there are over 750 products that contain this active ingredient for agronomic, commercial, and home use. How does… Read More →

by Dr. Calvin Trostle, Extension Agronomy, TAMU Soil & Crop Sciences, Lubbock, (806) 723-8432, ctrostle@ag.tamu.edu This week I was in Mitchell County, Texas to talk about cover cropping (see companion article in this month’s RCNL). As cover cropping has become a national topic of interest in agriculture, sometimes I think the interest and enthusiasm gets carried away with some statements about soil and our farming practices that need some perspective. This could very well be purely unintentional. But if a Texas farmer is lectured about any of the… Read More →

Contact

AgriLife Bookstore

AgriLife Extension's online Bookstore offers educational information and resources related to our many areas of expertise and programming; from agriculture, horticulture, and natural resources to nutrition, wellness for families and youth, and much more.